The reason of the shooting in the capital of New Brunswick province was not immediately known.

Police have confirmed that two of those fatally wounded were local police officers.

Police and RCMP officers survey the area of a shooting in Fredericton, New Brunswick, Canada. Picture: AP

Fredericton is a city of roughly 58,000 people.

Of the four people killed in this morning's shootings on Brookside Drive, two were Fredericton Police officers. No names are being released at this time. Please appreciate this is a difficult time for their families and our colleagues. We will provide more info when we can.

In 2014, another mass shooting in New Brunswick led to the deaths of three Royal Canadian Mounted Police officers and the wounding of two more in Moncton.

At the time, the incident was one of the worst of its kind in Canada, where gun laws are stricter than they are in the US and deadly attacks on police are rare. But a proliferation of weapons has led to an increase in gun crimes in recent years.

Last month, a gunman walked down a busy Toronto street, killing two people and wounding 13 before turning his gun on himself.

The Globe and Mail reported gun violence had soared in Toronto over the summer, with 228 shootings that killed 29 people and injured at least 150.

In March, the Canadian government admitted offences involving firearms had increased as they tabled a bill to strengthen gun control.

The government reported 2465 violations involving firearms in 2016, a rise of 30 per cent from 2013.

The Canadian Parliament is currently debating the new laws, where an applicant's background would be checked entirely, rather than just five years.

Gun retailers would also be required to keep records of their firearms inventory and sales for at least 20 years.